Seventh Day Adventist Fundamental Beliefs | Doctrine Introduction

What we believe about God and the Bible does impact on our lives and the way we deal with people and this really matters. 

E te Atua
He mihi tēnei ki a koe
Mo au painga ki a mātou
I tēnei wā
Amine

Lord
This is a greeting to you
For your kindness to us
At this time
Amen

What we believe about God and the Bible does impact on our lives and the way we deal with people and this really matters. Every Adventist, every Christian and every non-Christian in a sense is a theologian because we all have some understanding of God and belief or unbelief. Even those of us who passively ignore issues of faith and belief are reflecting a form of theology. How we actively or passively respond to our belief makes a difference in the world. Healthy actions and relationships should flow from a healthy belief.

During this next quarter I am going to blog about the doctrines of the church. Poor doctrine can be destructive, as many former Adventists experienced at Waco (Waco Siege, n.d.). They were no better or worse than us, but they were mistaken. Doctrines do matter in much the same way as a good theory helps us to understand what is happening in our natural world. 

Doctrine helps us to make sense of the spiritual world. Those who dismiss doctrine fail to realise that their own supposed rejection of doctrine is nothing more than a weak parody. Jesus believed and taught doctrine (Ben, 2015). The mistake we along with many Christians make is that we can substitute them for Jesus. Good doctrine should lead us away from poor spiritual and practical decisions and towards Jesus (Jn 20:31).

How much doctrine do we need to be saved and does it have to be correct? The Ethiopian eunuch had one bible study from Phillip. The jailer at Philippi had little instruction and the crucified thief only understood one doctrine - that Jesus was the Messiah and that Jesus would save him (and not from his death as a criminal). The New Testament believers had a major doctrinal dispute about how to accept Gentiles. Those who were on the wrong side of the argument were still saved. The important thing in matters of doctrine is to remain in a state of humility (Phil 2:5; Phil 3:15). It may be that you are right and that I am wrong. There should always be a place for informed and robust discussion that considers more than one perspective. Bitter combat over doctrine turns people off church - ask my kids. What if the church is wrong in just one doctrine - does that mean that everyone who believes it is lost - of course not.  It is not knowledge that saves but rather knowing Jesus (Jn 17:3). 

I am a New Zealand Seventh-day Adventist, I was brought up and baptised as one and so I have that as a basic level entry requirement. Some of my family are Adventists and some are not. Some of my family are Christians and some are not. I am not a Baptist a Catholic, Moslem or Atheist so in that sense my knowledge, experience and culture are Adventist. I don't think that I am necessarily any more right than someone else but based on those things I have mentioned I do think there are some observations I can make that your average 'Joe Blogs' non-Adventist may not be able to comment on.

Adventism like many other groups is not as homogenous as non members might suspect. One blog post (Cloudwatcher, 2011) characterised the Adventist groups this way: liberal, progressive, moral influence/larger view, evangelical, moderate, conservative/traditional, ultra-conservative/traditional, and finally extremist ultra-conservative/traditional. It is hardly surprising then that from time to time theological tensions arise which have direct impact on ministers and members. All groups, perhaps even the liberals would consider themselves to have a biblical perspective. In terms of the wider Christian church this would be correct. Theology within the Adventist church has always been dynamic. We sometimes picture the church as being unchanging like God. This view is incorrect, and if we hold to it, we can become severely disappointed when what we have come to believe, is now no longer taught or practised by the church. What needs to change is not so much the church's theology but our own. The church as an organisation is not a personal thing and theology is personal. The criticism that Jesus levelled at the church of his time (Mt 15:9) can still be made today but we need to keep in mind that during His life He stayed with it.

Laws, rules and regulations are added when things need to be corrected by those in power. God gave us ten rules to live by and now we are up to twenty eight. In some respects I see why the church may need to formalise doctrine but in another way less doctrine could be more. Do we need this many? Today we would probably defrock Uriah Smith for not believing in the trinity (Uriah Smith: 1832 – 1903, n.d.). At the very least we look askance at those who hold this position today.

So what is my view. I think its fair to give you some clues. As I have read and studied I don't necessarily fit any one group. As a younger person I had leanings towards conservative Adventism. I understand the extremes. Now my beliefs fit somewhere between progressive, evangelical and moderate. There are some aspects of broader evangelical Christianity particularly in the United States I am not fussed on. I have been influenced by some features of Red letter Christianity but think that more recent developments in that movement are minimising the concept of sin and the power of the Gospel. At the core of my belief is a conviction of the Apostle's Creed and an abiding belief that the Lord will keep His promise and return and that the fourth commandment is still valid. These last things make me Christian and Seventh-day Adventist.

Php 4:20 
Na, waiho i te Atua, ara i to tatou Matua, te kororia ake ake. Amine.

To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

References
Ben. (2015, March 26). More Jesus, less doctrine = less Jesus. In Contemporary issues. Retrieved from http://www.plainsimplefaith.com/2015/03/more-jesus-less-doctrine-less-jesus/

Cloudwatcher. (2011, October 27). Different types of Adventists. In Former Adventist Fellowship Forum.  Retrieved from http://www.formeradventist.com/discus/messages/12959/11827.html?1320378887


Uriah Smith: 1832 – 1903. (n.d.). In Third Angel's Message. Retrieved from http://www.thethirdangelsmessage.com/uriah_smith_trinity.php

Waco siege. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waco_siege